POUL ROVSING OLSEN

Symphonic Variations, Op. 27

Piano Concerto, Op. 31

Au fond de la nuit (In the Depth of the Night), Op. 61

5

I. L'espace

3:52

6

II. Betelgeuse

3:25

7

III. L'astre mort

2:34

8

IV. Retour

4:22

Bo Holten Conductor

Holten, Bo

The Danish composer Poul Rovsing Olsen’s (1922-82) background was in the Danish-French tradition, and his works are typified by clear-cut rhythms, expressive melody lines and colourful tonal effects. This world premiere recording of his dazzling Concerto pour Piano et Orchestre together with his two major orchestral works Variations Symphoniques and Au Fond de la Nuit features pianist Christina Bjørkøe accompanied by the Odense Symphony Orchestra and conductor Bo Holten.

"...This new, exceptionally well-played-and-recorded release presents first recordings of three Olsen orchestral works ... Get this for Olsen’s Symphonic Variations and Piano Concerto..."

Mark Lehman - American Record Guide - March/April 2013

"... Decapo’s sound is excellent and the disc is a fine introducion to this composer."

Guy Rickards - Gramophone magazine - April 2013

"There’s not much out there by this relatively short-lived Danish composer, which is too bad since he is one of those Danes who looked to France for inspiration and techniques when some of their countrymen were turning to Darmstadt. Clear-cut rhythms, expressive melodic lines and colorful tonal effects typify Rovsing Olsen’s style. His 1953-54 piano concerto is the highlight here, a three-movement 28-minute work with strong drive and great with with roots in stringent neo-classicism in which the piano and the orchestra are treated as equal partners. The 1953 Variations brings both drama and lyricism in richly imagined orchestration; the 1968 Au fond is the odd man out, so to speak, freely atonal but, in that it is describing “Space”, “Betelgeuse”, “The Dead Star” and “Return” (i.e. to Earth), it ends up sounding like a soundtrack to a contemporary science-fiction movie."